German Defense Minister Says He Hasnʼt Heard of Britainʼs Idea to Exchange Taurus for Storm Shadow and Transfer Them to Ukraine

The head of the German Defense Ministry, Boris Pistorius, said that he did not know anything about Britainʼs proposal to transfer Taurus missiles to them, so that London would in return transfer Storm Shadow to Kyiv and deprive Berlin of the discussion on the direct transfer of missiles.

He told about this in an interview with Bild.

"I donʼt know anything about this proposal. If there are negotiations about this, it is not in my office," he said.

According to him, the German government does not rule out the possibility of supplying Taurus to Ukraine, but there is no decision yet.

Pistorius also rejected suggestions that Germany is not providing Taurus to Ukraine because of Putinʼs threats.

The day before, the German newspaper Handelsblatt reported that Great Britain offered to supply Ukraine with more of its Storm Shadow cruise missiles in exchange for Taurus from Germany.

In that case, Britain or France could get the Taurus from the warehouses of the German Armed Forces, and in return, Paris and London could transfer to Ukraine more of the cruise missiles they already supply.

• Ukraine asked Germany for Taurus missiles with a range of up to 500 km last spring. Since then, there have been discussions about it. The German government does not agree to the transfer of these weapons. On January 17, 2024 , the Bundestag rejected the oppositionʼs request to hand over the Taurus to Ukraine, but the government and chancellor have the final word on the matter.